Learning Lessons
by ViciousMegZ
Summary: After a fallout with her family a young woman travels from California trying to get as far away from home as possible. She ends up in Georgia and meets a certain handsome redneck. Pre-apocalypse but will continue into that. This is my first attempt at fanfiction and I would appreciate reviews and opinions.
1. Chapter 1

As she was sitting on the bus, watching the scenery change and houses fly by, she couldn't help but cry. A fear and loneliness growing inside her, making her feel hollow and empty. She was on her own for the first time in her life. She curled up, hugging her knees close to her body, leaning her forehead lightly on the window of the bus and let out a deep sigh.

"Next stop Phoenix." Was heard in the speaker. 'Are you kidding me?' She thought. It felt like she'd been on this bus forever and she had just made it to Arizona. Frustrated, she rummaged through her bag in search for her headphones to drown out the noise of the bus and her own thoughts rushing through her head. Finally, she found them and curled up once again, deciding to make an attempt to sleep.

"Miss… miss?" Her eyes shot open, startled at the soft touch of the bus driver. "Miss, we have arrived in Dallas. You have to get off the bus." Still not completely awake, she scurried to get her things and left the bus, quietly apologizing to the driver as she on her way out. Upon entering the bus station she immediately knew, this wasn't the right place. She didn't know where she belonged anymore but she knew it wasn't here. She panicked. This wasn't right. She could feel her heart racing and tears forming in her eyes. What had she done? She couldn't survive on her own. She clutched her bag closer and ran towards the bathroom, locking herself in. With tears filling up her eyes she couldn't see while she rummaged through her bag, frantically searching for her cell phone. Once she had it in her hand she stopped for a second, trying to calm down and regain her sight. She wiped her tears and took a deep breath before dialing the all too familiar number.

"Benny?" she managed to get out before her voice broke. "Benny it's me, I-" a small click sound was heard and her heart sunk to the pit of her stomach. He hung up on her. She got up from the toilet seat and paced back and forth in the bathroom that seemed to get smaller by the second. Her heart was beating so loud and hard that she swore it would shoot right out of her chest. She really was all on her own now. Her pain suddenly turned to anger and it felt like time slowed down. She made her way towards the sink and placed one hand on each side of it. Staring at herself in the mirror she tightened the grip of the sink, her knuckles whitening.

"If they don't WANT me, then I don't NEED them." She said through clenched teeth before grabbing her things and storming out of the bathroom, making her way towards the departure hall. She can feel people staring at her as she determinately stomped through the bus station, only stopping to view the large monitor hanging from the ceiling, displaying the departure times. Where does she go from here? She needed to continue, needed to get further away from LA. She caught herself smile a little as she viewed the monitor. That's the place. She turned around and walked towards the counter.

She was suddenly awakened by a loud noise. Startled, she took out her headphones and peeked along the aisle towards the driver, trying to see what had happened. She could hear the driver mumble something incoherent while leaving the bus.

"GOD DAMN IT!" The driver's sudden outburst startled her and many of the other passengers. This can't be good.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm afraid I have some bad news. We blew a tire. There are people on the way but it might be a while." The energy in the bus changed as the driver, once again, left the bus. 'This is just great.' She thought to herself as she reached for her water bottle. With the bus at a standstill the AC was off and it was quickly getting uncomfortably hot. She felt her clothes sticking to her body and she couldn't get comfortable.

"Screw this!" she said out loud. Loud enough to get a disapproving look from the older lady in the seat across the aisle. She didn't care. She grabbed her things and walked off the bus. A small breeze hit her face, the sun scorching hot. It's still better than the sticky heat inside the bus.

"Miss, you should stay on the bus until the transportation vehicles come and get all of you. They'll get you to a hotel or something." The driver said when he saw her get off the bus.

"I'm not staying. I'm… I'm going to… umm… walk the road." She told him. She couldn't stay here any longer.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea. We're kind of in the middle of nowhere right now. It will be best if you stay here and wait with the rest of us." He probably didn't mean to be arrogant about it but that's the way he came off to her. Acting like he knew what was right for her. Her brothers used to do that. They always were more social and would constantly give her advice, whether she wanted it or not. This was her time to take control of her life, of herself.

"I'm not staying here any longer." She had made up her mind. There was no turning back now. She turned her back on him and walked away.

"I really think you should stay." She heard him but didn't respond, just kept on walking. Focusing her eyes at a spot in the horizon and making her way towards it.

It wasn't long until she couldn't see the bus anymore and made her way towards a small bridge going over a creek. It was a beautiful setting. The sun made the water sparkle like diamonds. The small breeze made the trees and flowers dance in harmony with each other. She leaned forward, resting her forearms on the railing of the small bridge. She was going to get back in touch with her artistic routes. Her painting and her photography was going to help her and heal her, now broken, spirit. She took her phone out of her bag and stared at it in pain and in anger. In order for her to really move on, she needed to shed herself of everything that might have a negative impact on her. The only people she really knew was her brothers so it wasn't like she was leaving people behind. She was the one being left behind. Never being able to make friends, she had stayed close to her brothers since she was little. They had always been there for her. They made it a thing that if you wanted to be friends with them, you had to accept her. Many people called themselves her friends but they never would've noticed her if her brothers hadn't made it their mission to point her out, forcing people to be friends with her. Now, nobody wanted her. She took a deep breath before tossing the phone into the creek, watching it hit (and break) against a large rock before disappearing. It was done.

She was surrounded with nothing but nature. She didn't think that she that far out in the woods. Did she take a wrong turn somewhere? No, she was still on the main road, she was sure of it. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a car. She turned around but couldn't see it yet. 'I'll just ask for a ride to the nearest town' she thought to herself. Then she got a little nervous. She had never hitchhiked before. What if she would end up in the car of some murderer? She saw the car come around the curve and she quickly stuck her thumb up, hoping that all the movies and TV shows weren't wrong about what that actually meant. The car slowed down, went only a few feet passed her before it came to a complete stop. She took a deep breath before walking up to the passenger side.

"You need help or something?" His voice was deep and powerful yet soft almost like a whisper. His muscular body made her tingle all over her body and his beautiful blue eyes made her knees buckle.

"Umm… yeah. I was on a bus heading for Atlanta and it broke down." She said far too slow for her own liking. What was this guy doing to her? She had never reacted like this before.

"Yeah, I saw the bus a while back. You walked all this way? Why didn't you just stay with the others?" It was a valid question, but what was she going to say? That she had a big fight with her brothers and ran away? That she was so angry that she couldn't stay in a confined space with strangers? Yes, that would sound great coming from someone asking for asking a stranger for a ride.

"I don't really know… I guess I'm just a little restless."

"Well I'm only going as far as Ellijay. But if you wanna… come with… I'll get ya there. If you want." He bit his lip slightly and avoided eye contact.

"Is there like a hotel or something in Ellijay?" She asked a little scared that it was a dumb question.

"Yeah I think there's an Inn on Main Street." He said while scratching the back of his head.

"Great." She got into the passenger's seat and buckled her seatbelt. She looked up and smiled. Their eyes met and she felt a jolt going through her entire body.

"I'm Megan."

"Daryl."


	2. Chapter 2

Megan woke up around 11am when a large truck went by just outside her window. She groaned, kicked off her blankets and squirmed around until she was sitting on the edge of the bed. What the hell was she going to do today? She couldn't decide what was worse, the days or the nights. There were only two things that occupied Megan's mind. Number one was the pain of losing her family. She had been on antidepressants and anti anxiety medication for a long time but now she was getting scared. They used to work fine. She didn't feel drugged but she didn't get manically happy either. They made her feel okay. Now, it felt like they didn't work as well as before and she'd found herself drinking more alcohol than usual. She wasn't known for her drinking, quite the opposite actually. Megan wasn't what you'd call a "good drinker". It didn't take much for her to feel buzzed and she didn't like the feeling of not being in complete control of her mind. She wasn't drinking copious amounts but for her, it was a big change. She had suddenly found herself needing alcohol so that she could sleep at night and in the past few days she had started drinking earlier each day. Aside from putting a gun in her mouth, it was the only way she thought she could numb the pain.

The second thing that occupied her mind was him, Daryl, the handsome stranger that was kind enough to give her a ride when she was walking alone on a road in the middle of nowhere. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about him and her sketchbook was proof of that, filled with drawings of him, his eyes, his lips and his muscles. He had a strange hold of her and she couldn't figure out why. What was it about him that captured her interest? She had never felt this way before, not that she ever had much of an interest in boys. She didn't go through the normal teenage stages. She had always been more interested in books and her education than boys, even spending her prom night at the library. But for some reason she just couldn't get Daryl out of her head.

Megan reached for the bottle of antidepressants on the bedside table. She poured some pills into her hand and considered emptying the bottle. She had just refilled her prescription, so taking the whole bottle would most likely cause cardiac arrest, especially if she took the anti anxiety meds as well. She took only two pills and put the rest back in the bottle and throwing into the drawer of the small table. She stared at the two pills in her hand and reached for the glass of water on the table. She put the pills in her mouth and took a drink of water before heading into the shower.

Megan walked into the liquor store just after 3pm that day. She browsed around for a while before she started filling her basket with miniature liquor bottles before walking up to the cash register.

"And a carton of Lucky Strike, please." The cashier stared at her basket before reaching under the counter for the cigarettes. He never said anything but she could feel him judging her, feeling sorry for her. He gave her a stiff smile and handed her a brown paper bag to carry her bottles in. She picks up the bag and cigarettes and holds them close to her chest, trying to not meet the gaze of the cashier.

She started to make her way towards a small park, looking over the Ellijay River. There was a nice gazebo right by the riverbank, she made her way over and sat down on the bench and put the large bag of liquor bottles and the carton of cigarettes down beside her.

She picks up the carton of cigarettes and begins the struggle of removing the protective plastic. 'God damn it.' She thought to herself before searching through her purse for her nail file, using it to cut an opening in the plastic. She finally gets the plastic off and gets her first cigarette of the day. Megan then stuck her hand into the paper bag; grabbing a random bottle she downed it in a single swig. She finished her cigarette before downing another bottle.

"Can I bum one of those from ya?" That voice, that deep, powerful yet soft mumble. It was him, Daryl. She turned around to look at him. She didn't think it was possible at first, but he looked even better than last time. She smiled and took the open pack of cigarettes out of her bag.

"Sure." She handed him the cigarettes and when he reached out to take them, their hands touched slightly. Megan felt a jolt of electricity go through her body. She tried to stay calm, not wanting Daryl to see her blush or acting weird. "Daryl, right?" she asked him. She knew exactly who he was but she wasn't good at small talk and she didn't want him to leave just yet.

He nodded while taking a puff on his cigarette. He seemed awkward and nervous. While Megan was used to making people feel uncomfortable, she didn't want him to feel that way. He stopped fidgeting and looked almost sad.

"That's not a good mix…" Megan looked at her feet, where three small liquor bottles had been dropped. She had a third bottle that she had no recollection of drinking.

"What, you never mixed different kinds of liquor before?"

"Umm… I'm talking about the Xanax in your purse. Shouldn't mix that with alcohol." Megan looked down at her feet again, her eyes tearing up. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know him enough to pour her heart out. She could only imagine the thoughts he had about her. Sitting alone on a bench, drinking early in the afternoon could not look good.

"I… umm… I didn't mean to upset you…" She could tell that he wasn't used to being in situations where people cried. He was uncomfortable, she could tell. Megan looked up, meeting Daryl's gaze. There was something strangely comforting with him. She made an attempt to smile and wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her hoodie. He walked over and gave her a red handkerchief. He didn't say anything but sat down next to her on the bench.

"Thank you." It was barely audible but it was all that she could get out. They sat in awkward silence for several minutes. What was it they called alcohol? Liquid courage. She felt it. She hadn't eaten all day and she was starting to get hungry. She took a deep breath.

"I haven't eaten today… You wanna get some food? My treat." She immediately regretted asking him. What if he said no?

"Sure. There's a diner just up the road…" Oh my god. He actually said yes. She couldn't believe it. She smiled and quickly grabbed her things, stuffing it in her purse before making their way towards the parking lot.

The diner was small but rather comfy. They got a booth and ordered their food. Daryl was looking around like he was wanted by the police, ready to fight if anyone got to close. The ride over had been quiet and awkward. Megan wanted to start a conversation, really get to know him but she didn't know how to start. She didn't want him to feel uncomfortable and based on his nervous behavior, there was a big chance that Megan would say or do something to make him feel that way. She had a small advantage. She wasn't completely sober. If she would make him feel bad she could always use that as an excuse. But she didn't want to excuse her behavior. She wanted to tell him how fascinating she was by him. A part of her wanted to show Daryl her sketchbook. He seemed like the kind of person that hadn't been given many compliments in his life.

"Native?" She was going for it. She needed to at least try to talk to this man or she would never forgive herself.

"What?" He seemed very surprised that she started a conversation.

"Are you native? To Ellijay? Like, born and raised?"

"Yeah." He nodded while answering her question.

After that things got a little easier. He opened up a little. Megan learned about his brother Merle, that he was a hunter and, most importantly, that he was single. It wasn't the easiest thing to ask without making it sound weird but she did it. It made her smile. She didn't necessarily think that him being single gave her some sort of chance. It wasn't like she was some sort of catch but it still made her feel happy.

After dinner they were sitting in Daryl's car. Megan felt very comfortable this time. She felt like the conversation she and Daryl had in the diner made a difference. She could tell that he was feeling more at ease, his body language was a clear indicator of that. He didn't seem like he was trying to get as far away from her as possible, not pressing himself as close to the car door this time.

"Do you need a ride back to the park or..?"

"No, I'm staying at the Inn. I don't drive, don't have a car."

They arrived at the Inn around 9pm, having spent a lot of time talking at the diner. She wanted him to kiss her, or herself to kiss him. This seemed a lot easier in romantic comedies.

"Thank you, for keeping me company and for the ride." He smiled at her and she exited the car. She walked up to her door and searched her pocket for the key, then suddenly stopped and turned around. She made her way back up to Daryl's car and just bluntly said what she had wanted to say all night.

"I want to see you again. There's something interesting about you and I can't stop thinking about you. You have one hell of a poker face because I can't for the life of me figure out what you're thinking. Do you find me incredibly annoying or…" She stopped to try and calm herself down. Daryl got out of the car with a look of total confusion. She couldn't stop. Not now. She took a step towards him, looking right into his eyes, oh, those beautiful blue eyes. She put her hands softly on his hips and gave him a soft, gentle kiss.


End file.
